by our College Data Analytics TeamNew Mexico State University-Main Campus is a public institution in Las Cruces, New Mexico enrolling 11,946 undergraduates. It accepts 89% of applicants and has an on-time graduation rate of 55%, above the national average of 33%. College Factual ranks it #1,860 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in its 2027 Best Colleges ranking (top 36%), and its Value for Your Money analysis rates it a Fair Price.
Source: IPEDS 2025; College Scorecard July 2026; College Factual rankings 2027. Data as of: July 2026.
New Mexico State University-Main Campus ranks #1,860 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in College Factual’s 2027 Best Colleges ranking, placing it in the top 36%.
College Factual recognizes the best colleges and universities in its annual rankings. These rankings include categories for best overall colleges, best colleges for each major, best value schools, and much more.
New Mexico State University-Main Campus was awarded 493 badges in the 2027 rankings.
According to College Factual’s 2027 analysis, NMSU is ranked #1,860 out of 5,159 schools in the nation that were analyzed for overall quality.
NMSU is also ranked #6 on the Best Colleges in New Mexico list.
See all of the rankings for New Mexico State University-Main Campus.
With an acceptance rate of 89%, New Mexico State University-Main Campus is easier to get into than many other schools. But that doesn’t mean you can slack off on your application. Make sure to treat this school like any other when submitting requested materials and documents.
About 68% of students accepted to NMSU submitted their SAT scores. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing scores ranged between 450 and 570. Math scores were between 420 and 540.
NMSU received ACT scores from 18% of accepted students. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, ACT Composite scores ranged between 17 and 24.
Learn more about New Mexico State University-Main Campus admissions.
With a student to faculty ratio of 16 to 1, New Mexico State University-Main Campus is about average in this regard as the nationwide rate is 15 to 1. While this does not translate directly to class size, it’s a good indicator of how much time professors will have to spend with their students on a one-on-one basis.
In addition to the student to faculty ratio, some people look at what percentage of faculty members are full-time as a sign of how much time professors will be able to spend with their students. This is because part-time teachers may not be on campus as much as their full-time counterparts.
The full-time faculty percentage at New Mexico State University-Main Campus is 75%. This is higher than the national average of 47%.
The freshmen retention rate of 73% tells us that most first-year, full-time students like New Mexico State University-Main Campus enough to come back for another year. This is a fair bit higher than the national average of 68%. That’s certainly something to check off in the good column about the school.
The on-time graduation rate for someone pursuing a bachelor’s degree is typically four years. This rate at NMSU for first-time, full-time students is 55%, which is better than the national average of 33.3%.
Find out more about the retention and graduation rates at New Mexico State University-Main Campus.
The current enrollment includes 11,946 undergraduates at NMSU.
Get more detailed information on the diversity at New Mexico State University-Main Campus.
The overall average net price of NMSU is $17,140. The affordability of the school largely depends on your financial need since net price varies by income group. See the table below for the net price for different income groups.
| $0-30 K | $30K-48K | $48-75 | $75-110K | $110K + |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $6,648 | $7,424 | $9,861 | $13,146 | $14,049 |
The net price is calculated by adding tuition, room, board and other costs and subtracting financial aid. Note that the net price is typically less than the published price for a school. For more information on the sticker price of NMSU, see our tuition and fees and room and board pages.
It’s not uncommon for college students to take out loans to pay for school. In fact, almost 66% of students nationwide depend at least partially on loans. At NMSU, approximately 20% of students took out student loans averaging $5,294 a year. That adds up to $21,176 over four years for those students. The student loan default rate is 15.3%. This is significantly higher than the national default rate of 10.1%, which means you could have trouble paying back your student loans if you take any out. Get more details about paying for New Mexico State University-Main Campus.
The pay for some majors is higher than others, but on average, students who graduate with a bachelor’s degree from New Mexico State University-Main Campus make about $39,067 a year during their first few years of employment after graduation. This is about 21% less than the average pay for college graduates overall. However, graduates with your major may make more.
See which majors at New Mexico State University-Main Campus make the most money.
New Mexico State University-Main Campus is an public institution situated in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Las Cruces is a good match for students who enjoy the safety and convenience of the suburbs. Get more details about the location of New Mexico State University-Main Campus.
Get in touch with New Mexico State University-Main Campus are listed below.
| Contact Details | |
|---|---|
| Address: | 2850 Weddell Street, Las Cruces, NM 88003-8001 |
| Phone: | 5756460111 |
| Website: | www.nmsu.edu/ |
| Wikipedia: | en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Mexico_State_University |
| Facebook: | www.facebook.com/newmexicostateuniversity |
| Twitter: | twitter.com/nmsu |
In the most recent reporting year, students from 28 majors graduated from New Mexico State University-Main Campus. The following table lists the most popular undergraduate majors along with the average salary graduates from those majors make.
| Most Popular Majors | Completions | Average Salary of Graduates |
|---|---|---|
| Multi-Disciplinary Studies | 3,448 | NA |
| Computer Information Systems | 245 | $57,124 |
| Nursing | 178 | $65,075 |
| Criminal Justice & Corrections | 156 | $27,587 |
| Mechanical Engineering | 149 | $63,582 |
| Liberal Arts General Studies | 141 | $26,342 |
| General Psychology | 140 | $20,207 |
| Social Work | 120 | $39,422 |
| Teacher Education Grade Specific | 117 | $33,051 |
| General Biology | 114 | $23,135 |
8,499 students took at least one online class at New Mexico State University-Main Campus.
Online learning is becoming popular at even the oldest colleges and universities in the United States. Not only are online classes great for returning adults with busy schedules, they are also frequented by a growing number of traditional students.
Learn more about online learning at New Mexico State University-Main Campus.
Interested in comparing NMSU? Compare them side by side using College Combat, a free interactive tool for comparing colleges on the features you care about.
Footnotes
*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.
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